The New Deal
by Sarah1281
Summary: After being cornered by Kings Midas and George and forced into an engagement he doesn't want, James seeks out Rumpelstiltskin to let him know just what he thinks of the altered agreement and must consider how much the possibility of true love means to him


The New Deal

Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time.

James had no real way of contacting Rumpelstiltskin but he was determined to talk to him just the same. He took a horse and rode a fair distance away from the castle until he was fairly certain that he was completely alone and not likely to be discovered.

Then he shouted Rumpelstiltskin's name.

He hadn't been calling for the man for more than two minutes before he felt someone behind him. He turned around and saw Rumpelstiltskin watching him curiously.

"You lied to me," James accused, trying to keep the fury out of his voice. He'd been trying ever since Midas informed him of his impending nuptials, though, and he was getting worn out.

Rumpelstiltskin cocked his head to the side. "Did I? I don't believe that I have."

"You told me that I would only need to pretend to be a prince long enough to slay that dragon," James reminded him.

"That does sound about right," Rumpelstiltskin agreed. "Where is the lie?"

"King George said that if I drop the act then he'll kill my mother!" James shouted.

Rumpelstiltskin was quiet for a moment, absorbing this. "How very crude. I can't say I approve of such threats. He only wanted you for the dragon when we made our deal and I told him about you. Something must have changed."

"King Midas might want me to marry his daughter," James admitted. "And he's threatening not to live up to his end of the deal if I don't."

Rumpelstiltskin looked positively pained at this. "Is there no more sanctity in deals? This wouldn't have happened if you simply went through me."

James thought that Rumpelstiltskin was rather missing the point but that was hardly surprising from what he'd heard of the man.

"I guess not," he said miserably. "I suppose the king figures that one James is as good as another." He paused as something occurred to him. "Why do both of us have the same name anyway?"

He didn't really expect an answer so he was surprised when Rumpelstiltskin spoke again.

"I thought it would make things easier down the road."

James' eyes widened. "Wait…_you_? You named us?"

"I named your brother," Rumpelstiltskin corrected. "You know the story of how your parents needed money to survive and the king and queen needed an heir. I picked twins in case anything happened to the prince so there would be options. I couldn't force you to take your brother's place but it was a better chance than if I hadn't picked twins."

James didn't know a whole lot about his brother and some of what he could glean he didn't like but he was achingly curious about the man whose life he had disappeared into just the same. "And if I had perished before him?"

"Then things would have been as if there was no twin," Rumpelstiltskin responded. "But as you know, it did not work out that way."

"You said you named him," James reminded him.

Rumpelstiltskin nodded. "And so I did. In the event that you would need to take your brother's place, it seemed like it would be an easier fit and less likely to be discovered if you kept the same name."

"So my parents named me," James concluded.

"They did," Rumpelstiltskin agreed. "Fortunately, 'James' is a regal enough name so I delivered your brother James to his royal parents and that was that."

It was quite convenient to still be a James but still so very bizarre to have a brother that shared his name.

Rumpelstiltskin was watching him closely.

"What?" James asked uncomfortably.

"You seem more upset than I would have expected at the thought of remaining a prince," Rumpelstiltskin noted. "Even considering the threat to your mother."

"It's not only that her life is in danger!" James burst out. "I'm never to see her again."

"I wouldn't know about 'never,'" Rumpelstiltskin disagreed. "Just until the current king dies and if I'm reading the signs correctly it won't be long. But even so, that doesn't completely explain it."

"I think it does," James said stubbornly.

"When you've been at this as long as I have, you learn to tell when someone's not being completely truthful," Rumpelstiltskin said shrewdly.

James hesitated and then decided that he had nothing to lose by confiding in him and he had no one else to talk to about it since he was barred from his mother. "I don't want to marry Abigail."

"Your fiancée?" Rumpelstiltskin asked rhetorically, rubbing his chin. "She's very beautiful and though she may not be the warmest of souls that hardly seems a reason to be so distressed. Your marriage will bring much prosperity to your kingdom including your mother and all that you grew up with."

"But she's not…" James trailed off, wondering how to put it. "I don't _love_ her."

Rumpelstiltskin nodded sagely. "Oh, I see."

"Do you?" James asked.

"You're one of _those_," Rumpelstiltskin informed him.

"One of _what_?" James demanded.

"You want to find your one true love, don't you?" It might have sounded like a question but Rumpelstiltskin seemed certain of the answer.

James felt his ears burning slightly. "What's wrong with that? She'll make me happier than any apathetic princess ever could."

"Oh, there's nothing wrong with that," Rumpelstiltskin assured him. "And she won't be likely to run off and leave you for your weaknesses or mistakes, either. Not everyone has one, though."

James felt himself growing alarmed. "What do you mean that not everybody has one?"

"Just what I said," Rumpelstiltskin replied. "Imagine how complicated that would be if every single person in every single land had just one person that was meant for them and who could make them truly happy. What if that person died before they met or died young? What if one party was married? It would be a mess and I'd guess that most people would end up settling for someone else or dying alone anyway."

"How do you know if you're one of the lucky ones that has a true love?" James asked, horrified at the thought that he might not even have one out there. He had always just sort of assumed that he did and all he had to do was find her. Right. _All_ he had to do was locate one girl that he knew nothing about and might not even recognize at first.

"You don't," Rumpelstiltskin said simply. "So deciding to wait would just be a matter of faith."

James said nothing, aghast.

Rumpelstiltskin chuckled at the expression on his face. "Who ever said that true love was easy? I can tell you one thing, though. If you do have a true love then you will meet her one day and you'll know it's her because you'll fall in love with her after spending a very short time with her. It might only be one meeting before you know. You won't be able to stop thinking about her and you'll want to spend more time with her."

"That's what I want," James said, his voice quiet but intense.

"And one day you might have it," Rumpelstiltskin told him. "It's really not for me to say."

"So what should I do about Abigail?" James demanded.

But Rumpelstiltskin shook his head. "That's your decision. Stay with her and risk not being available for your true love or end the engagement and risk your mother and perhaps your own life. If King George can't force you to marry Abigail then he might hope that making your death look like an accident or an assassination will compel Midas to fulfill the terms of the initial bargain instead."

James was silent for a moment as he contemplated his options. Finally he said, "I have time yet. I'm supposed to take a journey with Abigail before the wedding."

He turned to go.

"If it's any help," Rumpelstiltskin called after him, "true loves usually lead to happily ever afters and those are hard to come by after the wrong wedding."

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